Fire Service

The fire burning in western Attica and Viotia for a fourth consecutive day kept reviving on Thursday, leading to more evacuations and more destruction of property.

Evening winds fueled a major wildfire west of Greece's capital Thursday, triggering a series of new evacuations outside Athens as authorities braced for more of the extreme weather that has brought searing heat to southern Europe.

Firefighting aircraft and ground crews from other countries headed to Greece on Thursday to help battle wildfires that have intensified as a heat wave baked much of southern Europe in temperatures above 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit).

The wildfire tearing through southern Viotia and West Attica since Monday has reached the outskirts of the town of Megara, with local officials appealing for assistance.

Two major wildfires were burning west of Athens for a second day in a row Tuesday, burning dozens of houses, animals and threatening an oil refinery late at night, authorities said.

Starting in Attica Monday, the fires have spread into the regional units of Corinthia and Viotia, burning mostly through forestland, but also farmland, authorities said.

Residents in a number of settlements in Corinthia and Western Attica have received 112 emergency messages ordering them to evacuate their homes due to fires raging in the region.

Shortly after 7 p.m., residents of the Glykia Zoi settlement in Corinthia were ordered to evacuate their homes and move towards Agioi Theodoroi.

The residents of four parts of Dervenohoria in Viotia, northwest of Athens, were ordered to evacuate towards the West Attica town of Mandra on Tuesday as a wildfire started to approach homes and thick smoke filled the air.

Panorama, Pournari, Palaiohori and Agios Sotiras were being evacuated, as the blaze also crossed regional lines into Attica, heading towards Vilia and Oinoi.

Water-dumping aircraft took off at first light on Tuesday to help dozens of ground crews and mobile units battle three wildfires in the regions of Attica, Corinth and Viotia for a second day, as strong winds and high temperatures continued to exacerbate conditions.

Wildfire season got off to a roaring start in Greece on Monday, with two large fires burning southeast and west of the capital Athens, forcing seaside resort evacuations.

Staff and patients - including a woman in labor - had to be evacuated after a fire broke out in a medical clinic in the northern port city of Thessaloniki on Tuesday morning.

The Fire Service responded to the blaze in the city center in force, ordering the immediate evacuation of the facility and closing off surrounding streets to traffic and pedestrians.